44 year old goal keeper El Hadary was the hero last Wednesday night in Gabon when he led his country, Egypt to another grand final of the Africa Cup of Nations.

Egypt beat Burkina Faso on penalties to book their ticket to the final of the exciting competition that has seen many shocks and surprises.
​
The Pharaohs now wait for the winner of the other Semi final between Ghana’s Black Stars and the Indomitable Lions of Cameroun, both have won the trophy four times and are chasing their fifth title.

Egypt’s Pharaohs have won the Africa Cup seven times and want to stretch to make it eight to prove their dominance, but they have to wait for Sunday.

Many people have predicted a final between Ghana and Egypt.

Egypt have made it, now all eyes are on Ghana led by skipper Asamoah Gyan.

The 2017 AFCON has been very interesting and producing wonderful results.

The tournament has also shown that African Soccer has come of age with very high standard of play from the stars of the nations.

It is sad the top stars who were named for the continent’s best footballer awards could not make it to the party – the top four, like Gabon’s Aubamenyang, Senegal’s Mane and Algeria’s Mahrez.

However, other stars like El Hadary and Mohammed Salah of Egypt, Aristide Bance of Burkina Faso, Thomas Partey, Jordan Ayew and Christian Atsu from Ghana have also showed what they can do.

Generally, the tournament revealed that experience plays a key in winning, as all the four Semi finalists showed the character of learning from experience, especially Burkina Faso who have not won the Cup but were at this stage in the recent tournaments.
​
The Egyptians have shown their prowess as the great force to reckon with in African Football. Their local football is competitive, just like the national team, because the right things are done.

Goal Keeper El Hadary’s experience and discipline has contributed to Egypt’s success, and he stands as an example of a Living Legend who must be revered.

The last time Egypt won the cup was in 2010 when they beat Ghana, so there are many scores to settle between the Black Stars and the Pharaohs. Ghana has been at the Semi finals in the last six tournaments, but they have to beat Cameroun before.

The Pharaohs seem very focused and highly motivated after they put up a good performance to get ahead in the 2018 World Cup Qualifiers. A Grand Final between Egypt and Ghana is what most connoisseurs of the game predict.
​
The Gabon 2017 final will definitely be another great show of African Football.
​